New plans for Chesterfield listed building bidding to become a 'baby Chatsworth'

The owner of Dunston Hall, which has origins in the 17th Century and is Grade II listed, already has the green light to transform the property in order to host ceremonies and use it as a holiday-let.

However, the application to alter the mansion has faced criticism throughout the planning process – with Chesterfield and District Civic Society claiming planning laws had been breached.

Now detailed plans for how a Grade II listed outbuilding on the site can be transformed to serve as a wedding function room have been submitted to Chesterfield Borough Council.

A design and access statement, submitted as part of the planning process, says: “Whilst this approval allows for the hosting of 120 guests, Dunston Hall cannot physically accommodate that number in one room.

“This proposal therefore is to create a new function room capable of hosting 120 guests within the existing outbuildings associated with Dunston Hall.

“It is proposed that the outbuildings behind the hall, running north-south, be adapted to create the function space required, along with the necessary associated facilities, including storage, servery and toilets.

“The building is Grade II listed, and it is thought to have originated as a typical medieval cruck barn.”

Developers promise that ‘where condition allows, existing materials will be re-used’ as part of the work.

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Documents add: “Externally the approach has been to restore the building in its current form, whilst stripping away and replacing any inappropriate fabric (plastic gutters, boarded doors and windows), and so preserve and enhance its standing as a Grade II listed building, and valued historical asset.

“The interior of the building will alter more significantly, but the approach will be to create an environment that retains and celebrates the key historical elements of the building, whilst performing a viable commercial function.”

Dunston Hall’s owner David Harrison previously told us he had gone ‘above and beyond’ to secure the correction permissions for his plans for Dunston Hall.

He said he wanted to open up the property’s ‘stunning’ interior and create a ‘baby Chatsworth’ for people to enjoy.